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The stepmother of five-year-old Ayeesha, who was beaten to death in August 2017 by her biological father, has been handed a jail sentence.
The Singaporean woman, 35, pleaded guilty to three charges of child abuse and giving false information to the police.
She was sentenced to six years and three months' jail on Mar. 13 for joining in the abuse of Ayeesha and her younger brother.
The children were abused by their father and stepmother for almost two years, including being beaten and confined naked in a toilet for months.
They even ate their own faeces out of hunger, according to court documents.
Ayeesha and her brother were aged five and four respectively at the time of her death.
Both the woman and her husband cannot be named due to a gag order to protect the identity of Ayeesha's brother.
The man was initially sentenced to 34.5 years in jail, but later had it increased to life imprisonment after failing in an appeal to reduce his sentence.
Ayeesha and her brother were the man's biological children from his previous marriage.
After his divorce in 2013, he and the woman began living together in 2014.
They got married the year after.
The two children had previously been in foster care after their parents' divorce.
When they returned, their father and new stepmother split the caretaking duties between them.
Case officers from the Ministry of Social and Family Development also regularly checked on their welfare.
The couple also had three children together, while the woman had one daughter from her previous marriage.
In May 2015, the man told case officers that Ayeesha and her brother would be living with their mother in Woodlands soon.
But they continued to spend most of their time with their father and stepmother.
Initially, Ayeesha and her brother were given three meals a day consisting of rice, bread, or instant noodles.
But when the man ran into financial difficulties, he began buying fewer diapers and less food.
He and his wife also reduced the children's meals to twice a day.
Out of sheer hunger, Ayeesha and her brother began to play with and eat their own faeces.
They also began to lose weight.
Towards the end of 2015, the couple began to beat Ayeesha and her brother.
At this time, Ayeesha was three years old, and her brother was two.
In January 2016, the couple gave birth to another child, a daughter. The woman returned to her parents' home for confinement.
Upon her return a month later, the man complained that Ayeesha and her brother would regularly make a mess around the house.
The couple then decided to create a "naughty corner" — around 90cm by 90cm — to confine the children.
Initially, they were only placed there when they misbehaved.
This later turned into confinement throughout the day. They were only let out to eat and bathe.
They remained in the naughty corner for about eight months, until October 2016.
The "naughty corner". Photo from court documents
Between September and October 2016, the man told various case officers that he wanted to put the children into foster care or give them up for adoption.
But this did not end up happening.
In October 2016, the couple decided to move the children into a new "naughty corner", this time in the toilet.
They were confined there for nearly 10 months, until Ayeesha's death, and only allowed to leave during mealtimes.
While previously they would leave the children there in diapers, they now decided to confine them naked in the toilet.
The toilet was hence often stained with their faeces, court documents said.
Photo from court documents
In August 2017, the woman went to the toilet and saw the children sleeping on the floor.
She told them to stand up and move their legs, as they had not been moving for the entire day.
While the boy obeyed, Ayeesha refused.
The woman then complained about this to her husband, who went to the toilet, pulled Ayeesha up from the ground, and hit her 15 to 20 times in the face.
He left her on the ground with her head tilted backwards in an awkward position, and went to bed.
Later that night, the woman said that the children were sleeping in a weird posture.
The man went to the toilet, punched both children in the back, and kicked and stamped on Ayeesha's buttocks and shoulders.
He also slapped Ayeesha's face three to four times.
That evening, the woman tried to use the toilet but noticed that Ayeesha did not respond.
She realised her body was cold, and called for her husband.
He administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) but was unable to resuscitate her.
He then said he would "clean up the evidence".
The man instructed his wife to file a police report against him for beating her up and raping her.
This was part of a plan to avoid implicating her in Ayeesha's death.
The woman did so.
Later, when Ayeesha's brother was assessed at KKH, he was found to be suffering from severe malnutrition, global developmental delays, and a scabies infection among other health problems.
He was transferred to the Children's Intensive Care Unit for one day and remained in KKH for over three months.
In its submissions, the prosecution noted that Ayeesha and her brother had been confined for months on end.
"A toilet is not a place for any human being to live in, let alone a young child," the prosecution said.
The prosecution also pointed to the stepmother's "cruel" and "inhumane" treatment of the children.
Ayeesha was found with numerous wounds and abrasions, while her brother had skin infections over his body.
The woman further tried to protect herself from her offences by lying to the police.
In mitigation, her legal representative said that while he agreed with the need for a stiff sentence, the children's father was the main perpetrator.
District Judge Eugene Teo said that while the man's actions were perhaps more deplorable, the stepmother's abuse remained "gravely serious".
"It is painfully ironic now to seek mercy when so little was shown to those two children," he said.
The woman was allowed to speak with her fiance before being taken away, reported
'Cruel', 'inhumane': S'porean stepmum of girl, 5, abused to death by father, gets 6 years' jail
Her husband was initially sentenced to 34.5 years in jail, but later had it increased to life imprisonment after failing in an appeal to reduce his sentence.March 13, 2026, 03:50 PM
The stepmother of five-year-old Ayeesha, who was beaten to death in August 2017 by her biological father, has been handed a jail sentence.
The Singaporean woman, 35, pleaded guilty to three charges of child abuse and giving false information to the police.
She was sentenced to six years and three months' jail on Mar. 13 for joining in the abuse of Ayeesha and her younger brother.
The children were abused by their father and stepmother for almost two years, including being beaten and confined naked in a toilet for months.
They even ate their own faeces out of hunger, according to court documents.
Ayeesha and her brother were aged five and four respectively at the time of her death.
Both the woman and her husband cannot be named due to a gag order to protect the identity of Ayeesha's brother.
The man was initially sentenced to 34.5 years in jail, but later had it increased to life imprisonment after failing in an appeal to reduce his sentence.
Living together
Ayeesha and her brother were the man's biological children from his previous marriage.
After his divorce in 2013, he and the woman began living together in 2014.
They got married the year after.
The two children had previously been in foster care after their parents' divorce.
When they returned, their father and new stepmother split the caretaking duties between them.
Case officers from the Ministry of Social and Family Development also regularly checked on their welfare.
The couple also had three children together, while the woman had one daughter from her previous marriage.
2 years of abuse
In May 2015, the man told case officers that Ayeesha and her brother would be living with their mother in Woodlands soon.
But they continued to spend most of their time with their father and stepmother.
Initially, Ayeesha and her brother were given three meals a day consisting of rice, bread, or instant noodles.
But when the man ran into financial difficulties, he began buying fewer diapers and less food.
He and his wife also reduced the children's meals to twice a day.
Out of sheer hunger, Ayeesha and her brother began to play with and eat their own faeces.
They also began to lose weight.
Hitting, confinement
Towards the end of 2015, the couple began to beat Ayeesha and her brother.
At this time, Ayeesha was three years old, and her brother was two.
In January 2016, the couple gave birth to another child, a daughter. The woman returned to her parents' home for confinement.
Upon her return a month later, the man complained that Ayeesha and her brother would regularly make a mess around the house.
The couple then decided to create a "naughty corner" — around 90cm by 90cm — to confine the children.
Initially, they were only placed there when they misbehaved.
This later turned into confinement throughout the day. They were only let out to eat and bathe.
They remained in the naughty corner for about eight months, until October 2016.
More confinement
Between September and October 2016, the man told various case officers that he wanted to put the children into foster care or give them up for adoption.
But this did not end up happening.
In October 2016, the couple decided to move the children into a new "naughty corner", this time in the toilet.
They were confined there for nearly 10 months, until Ayeesha's death, and only allowed to leave during mealtimes.
While previously they would leave the children there in diapers, they now decided to confine them naked in the toilet.
The toilet was hence often stained with their faeces, court documents said.
Ayeesha's death
In August 2017, the woman went to the toilet and saw the children sleeping on the floor.
She told them to stand up and move their legs, as they had not been moving for the entire day.
While the boy obeyed, Ayeesha refused.
The woman then complained about this to her husband, who went to the toilet, pulled Ayeesha up from the ground, and hit her 15 to 20 times in the face.
He left her on the ground with her head tilted backwards in an awkward position, and went to bed.
Later that night, the woman said that the children were sleeping in a weird posture.
The man went to the toilet, punched both children in the back, and kicked and stamped on Ayeesha's buttocks and shoulders.
He also slapped Ayeesha's face three to four times.
That evening, the woman tried to use the toilet but noticed that Ayeesha did not respond.
She realised her body was cold, and called for her husband.
He administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) but was unable to resuscitate her.
He then said he would "clean up the evidence".
False information to police
The man instructed his wife to file a police report against him for beating her up and raping her.
This was part of a plan to avoid implicating her in Ayeesha's death.
The woman did so.
Later, when Ayeesha's brother was assessed at KKH, he was found to be suffering from severe malnutrition, global developmental delays, and a scabies infection among other health problems.
He was transferred to the Children's Intensive Care Unit for one day and remained in KKH for over three months.
Cruel, inhumane
In its submissions, the prosecution noted that Ayeesha and her brother had been confined for months on end.
The toilet, where Ayeesha lived in until her death, was also where their father and stepmother relieved themselves in and showered in."A toilet is not a place for any human being to live in, let alone a young child," the prosecution said.
The prosecution also pointed to the stepmother's "cruel" and "inhumane" treatment of the children.
Ayeesha was found with numerous wounds and abrasions, while her brother had skin infections over his body.
The woman further tried to protect herself from her offences by lying to the police.
In mitigation, her legal representative said that while he agreed with the need for a stiff sentence, the children's father was the main perpetrator.
District Judge Eugene Teo said that while the man's actions were perhaps more deplorable, the stepmother's abuse remained "gravely serious".
"It is painfully ironic now to seek mercy when so little was shown to those two children," he said.
The woman was allowed to speak with her fiance before being taken away, reported
